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Novel drug shuts down master protein key to lymphoma
Date: Aug-05-2013Researchers have discovered how an experimental drug is capable of completely eradicating human lymphoma in mice after just five doses. The study, led by researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College, sets the stage for testing the drug in clinical trials of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), the most common subtype of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, itself the seventh most frequently diagnosed cancer in the U.S...
Speedier scans reveal new distinctions in resting and active brain
Date: Aug-05-2013A boost in the speed of brain scans is unveiling new insights into how brain regions work with each other in cooperative groups called networks. Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the Institute of Technology and Advanced Biomedical Imaging at the University of Chieti, Italy, used the quicker scans to track brain activity in volunteers at rest and while they watched a movie...
Hope in fight against breast cancer spread to brain
Date: Aug-05-2013A combination of two new therapies already in clinical trials for the treatment of primary malignant brain tumors may also be effective in the treatment of breast cancer that has spread to the brain, according to US researchers. The team, from the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), demonstrated their new approach, which combines immunotherapy with gene therapy, in mice. They write about their findings in the August 1st print issue of the journal Clinical Cancer Research. Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women...
Wild type genetic background affects outcome even for diseases with a simple genetic basis
Date: Aug-05-2013If two women have the same genetic mutation that puts them at higher-than-average risk for a disease such as breast cancer, why does only one develop the disease? In the current issue of PLOS Genetics, Michigan State University genetic scientists have begun to understand how the rest of the genome interacts with such mutations to cause the differences we see among individuals. "It's been known for a while that genetic mutations can modify each other's effects," said Ian Dworkin, MSU associate professor of zoology and co-author of the paper...
The human brain spatial map
Date: Aug-04-2013Grid-like activity can be seen in the human brain in response to exploring a virtual environment, reports a study published online this week in the journal Nature Neuroscience. These findings imply that our internal navigation system is active even in the absence of movement in physical space. Previous studies suggest that the sense of place is supported by neurons called place cells, which are active when an animal is in a specific region in an environment, and grid cells that display a spatial pattern of activity that resembles a grid on a map...
Getting a TALEN-hold on mitochondrial disease
Date: Aug-04-2013A more specific method for deleting mutant mitochondrial DNA in human cells in order to combat diseases associated with mitochondrial dysfunction is reported in a paper published this week in Nature Medicine. These results may eventually be useful in permanently treating patients with some mitochondrial diseases. The mitochondria - organelles that supply energy for all human cells - have their own genomic DNA (mtDNA). Deleterious mutations in mtDNA can be inherited or built up over time, leading to reduced mitochondrial function and disease...
Potential new drug for tuberculosis
Date: Aug-04-2013A new drug capable of inhibiting growth of Mycobacterium tuberculosis is reported this week in Nature Medicine. The findings may improve therapeutic options for the treatment of drug resistant tuberculosis (TB). One-third of the world's population is latently infected with M. tuberculosis and more than a million people die of TB each year. Multidrug-resistant strains of M. tuberculosis are spreading, and therefore the need to develop new and improved drugs is urgent. Kevin Pethe and colleagues screened a chemical library for inhibitors of M...
Tracking nanodiamond-tagged stem cells
Date: Aug-04-2013A method that is used to track the fate of a single stem cell within mouse lung tissue is reported in a study published online this week in Nature Nanotechnology. The method may offer insights into the factors that determine the acceptance of transplanted stem cells, and their ability to regenerate within a host. Stem cell therapy has the potential to repair and regenerate damaged tissues. Implanted cells might, however, be rejected, migrate or die; tracking stem cells in vivo may help to further understand what happens once these cells are inside the host...
Mutation links intellectual impairment, schizophrenia and autism
Date: Aug-04-2013Genetic and biochemical evidence that RNA binding protein, TOP3b, may be a common factor in schizophrenia, autism spectrum disorders, and intellectual impairment is reported by two papers published this week in Nature Neuroscience. Taken together with prior findings that schizophrenia and autism may share common genetic risk factors, these studies identify potential biological processes that may be related to the cognitive deficits shared by these disorders. Due to migration patterns over the centuries, a region in Northern Finland has a high incidence of schizophrenia...
Clean water and soap may help improve growth in young children
Date: Aug-04-2013Improving water quality and hygiene practices may improve the growth of children, according to a new report. The Cochrane review - authored by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and WaterAid - found evidence of small but significant improvements in growth of children under the age of five who have access to clean water and soap...
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